


Together, With You

by revolutionrose



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-02
Updated: 2013-09-02
Packaged: 2017-12-25 10:51:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/952199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/revolutionrose/pseuds/revolutionrose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p> Armin tells Hanji to wait for him. Older!Armin/Hanji.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Together, With You

**Author's Note:**

>  Pretty much inspired by [this.](http://oeilvert.tumblr.com/post/59471992605/god)

  
  
The day Hanji said those precious words to him had been like any other day. Like always, Armin worked with Hanji in her lab late into the night, and she would walk him back to his room, lavishing him with compliments that he gladly accepted while trying to fight the heat creeping into his cheeks. He didn’t want his silly crush to ruin the relationship he had formed with Hanji, and had decided early on to repress his feelings that would only lead him to inevitable heartbreak, considering Hanji only saw him as a child and her protégé.   
  
As was her usual habit, Hanji ruffled Armin’s hair affectionately, and he smiled a little, savoring the feeling of her fingers treading through his hair.   
  
“You’re really adorable and smart, Armin.” Hanji said, laughing. “If you were older I’d totally want to marry you!”   
  
Armin froze, trying to comprehend the words that came out of Hanji’s mouth. “Y-You what?”   
  
“Just kidding,” Hanji replied good-naturedly, with one last tousle of Armin’s hair. “But I really liked your new idea on how to capture Titan’s alive more effectively, it was rea-”  
  
Hanji continued to speak, but Armin wasn’t listening.  _If you were older I’d totally want to marry you…_  Her words continued to reverberate in his head and the emotions he kept in check ever since he realized he felt a little more than mere admiration toward Hanji threatened to spill out. He told himself Hanji was just joking and being her playful self, but Armin was unable to suppress the flicker of hope he suddenly felt coursing through his entire body.   
  
Before he could stop himself and think logically about the situation at hand, he reached out and grasped Hanji’s hand in both of his own. Hanji paused mid-speech, blinking at him confusedly.   
  
“Armin, what are you-”  
  
“Wait for me,” Armin interrupted, hoping he sounded as determined as he felt. Hanji’s hand felt nice enveloped in his own, and wished he didn’t have to let go.   
  
Hanji still looked puzzled. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”   
  
Armin exhaled deeply. “Just, wait for me.” He reluctantly released Hanji’s hand, bidding her goodnight and quickly strode away, pressing both of his hands against his flushed cheeks.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Armin gazed at himself in the mirror, examining himself closely. Five years had passed since he told Hanji to wait for him, and he had changed since then. He had grown taller, broader in the shoulders, and his face had become more angular, losing most of the fat on his cheeks. Armin had also let his hair grow a little longer so he could tie it back in the same way Hanji did, remembering how flattered she was the first time he showed her his new hairstyle.   
  
He was a man now, and no longer a boy. It was also becoming increasingly difficult to be around Hanji, especially when he sat opposite her and their knees would accidentally bump, or when she linked arms with Armin to drag him to see her new Titan test subjects, and he felt the proximity driving him crazy because all he wanted to do was embrace Hanji tightly and bury his face in her hair.   
  
Even after five years, Hanji never seemed to realize the meaning of his words, although everyone else in the Scouting Legion eventually caught on, much to Armin’s dismay. Mikasa and Eren naturally knew from day one, since they understood Armin like the back of their hands, and he rationalized it was only reasonable for the rest of the 104th trainees squad to find out since they were also close friends and he spent most of his time with them. But it was the day when Irvin asked him what he planned to do about Hanji that Armin realized that the situation was pretty much outside of his control. Irvin assured him that everyone was fully supportive of whatever Armin decided to do, but Armin wasn’t convinced, acutely aware of the increasing amount of times he caught Levi glaring at him for no particular reason. When he voiced his concern to Irvin, the latter just chuckled.   
  
“Levi won’t ever admit out loud that he’s a little protective over Hanji so I’m afraid you’ll have to bear with it.”   
  
Having humanity’s strongest soldier eyeing his every move like a hawk was an added pressure Armin didn’t really need, but he would deal with it later. First, he needed tell Hanji everything he felt for her that he stowed away in the most innermost part of his heart for the last five years. It was difficult for Armin to bring the topic up; especially the times when Hanji reached out to ruffle his hair, making him feel like a kid again. But he was an adult now, unwavering in his resolve to prove it to her.   
  
After glancing at himself in the mirror one last time, Armin made his way own to Hanji’s lab.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Hanji was already enthusiastically at work when Armin arrived, sifting through a heap of research papers on her desk. She was so engrossed in what she was doing that she didn’t seem to notice her glasses had slid to the tip of her nose and was threatening to fall off. Armin smiled, finding it incredibly endearing. It was one of the qualities he loved about Hanji, the way she would passionately invest herself in her work, not letting anything around her distract her from her goal.   
  
He quietly made his way toward her, and she didn’t notice him until he pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. Hanji jumped, looking a little startled until she spotted Armin standing next to her.   
  
“Oh it’s you, Armin.” Hanji chuckled, motioning him to sit next to her. “I’m sorry, you know how I end up a little too absorbed in my research sometimes. Frankly, I’m surprised you and Moblit haven’t gotten sick of me after all these years.”   
  
“That could never happen,” Armin replied immediately, and he meant it. He knew many people considered Hanji not the easiest person to be around, and it was something she herself was conscious of, but it was different for him. Armin wanted to be with Hanji all the time, whether it was the days where she was at her most eccentric or the days when the darker side of her personality that she buried in the past shone through. When it came to Hanji, he wanted it all.   
  
Hanji smiled fondly at his reply. “You’re sweet, I don’t what I’d do without you.” Her hand reached out to tousle his hair like she always did, and Armin felt his heart sink. He needed to make himself clear, and he took a deep breath before grabbing her wrist and preventing any further movement. Hanji stared at him, perplexed.  
  
“Armin?”   
  
Armin swallowed thickly. It was now or never. “Squad Leader Hanji, do you remember when I told you to wait for me four years ago?”   
  
He watched as Hanji’s brow furrowed in concentration while she attempted to recollect the event. “I do, actually. I never really understood what you meant, and you avoided my questions whenever I asked you about it.”   
  
“I said that in response to your comment about how you would marry me if I was older,” Armin said quietly, and he noted how Hanji’s expression changed as she began to put two and two together. “I know you might not have said it seriously, but it meant something to me. Ever since I’ve gotten to know you, I’ve been longing for you, and that day I decided to wait until I became an adult and grew into someone mature enough to be with you to confess my true feelings.”   
  
Armin felt like a ton of weight had just lifted itself off his chest when he finished speaking, but he had trouble meeting Hanji’s eyes, fearing he would see rejection and disgust. He was still holding on Hanji’s wrist, and felt her pulse quicken underneath his fingers. Armin chanced a peek at her face, slightly surprised at the thoughtful expression he saw there, and at the faint shade of pink that adorned Hanji’s cheeks.   
  
Hanji opened her mouth to speak, but seemed to change her mind as she abruptly closed it again. Feeling a little guilty he had rendered Hanji, of all people, speechless, Armin decided to speak first. He let go of her wrist and gently placed her hand back in her lap.   
  
“Please don’t feel uncomfortable on account of me, I’m not expecting anything, and I know that perhaps it’s a little weird for you because it’s me, but I just want to know if there is even the slightest, miniscule chance that you could reciprocate my feelings in the near future,” Armin said, speaking the last part a little too hastily. “But if there isn’t, tell me now and I won’t bother you about this again and we’ll pretend this never happened.”   
  
There was complete silence for the next few minutes, where neither of them said anything, and Hanji just stared at her hands, deep in thought. Armin could practically feel his heart beating in his ears as he tensely waited for her reply, doubt and nervousness plaguing every inch of his being. When Hanji eventually spoke, it was so quietly that he couldn’t hear and had to lean in a little closer and ask her to repeat what she said. Hanji spluttered and quickly stood up, knocking over her chair in the process and making Armin jump in surprise.   
  
“I said that yes, despite the fact that I’m still getting my head around to what you just told me, there is a chance in the near future that I may…” she paused, frantically adjusting her glasses and Armin stood up as well, nodding at her to continue. “…see you in a different light to what I have all this time and perhaps develop feelings similar to the ones you have for me.”   
  
It was the best response Armin could have hoped for, and he beamed at her, wondering when the last time he felt this elated was. “Thank you, Squad Leader.” He decided it was best for him to take his leave now, to give Hanji some space to think. Before he could make his exit, he felt his sleeve being tugged and he turned around to face Hanji, a little bewildered.   
  
Hanji looked at him right in the eye as she spoke. “My name is Hanji.”   
  
Armin was confused, not understanding what Hanji was trying to get at.   
  
“Stop calling me Squad Leader,” she said, tugging on his sleeve a little harder. “Call me Hanji.”   
  
If it was physically possibly for his heart to burst out of his chest, Armin was certain it would have happened by now. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then,” he replied, unable to stop the smile spreading across his face. “Goodnight, Hanji.”   
  
Hanji grinned back at him. “Goodnight, Armin.” 


End file.
